A senior solar energy researcher from the University of Queensland has questioned the role of grid-scale battery storage as the “missing link” of Australia’s shift to renewables, and suggested that much more research needs to be done if the technology is to be rolled out successfully. Professor Paul Meredith – who is the head of solar at UQ, and oversees the University’s world-leading research project, the Gatton PV Pilot Plant, which is being conducted in conjunction with First Solar – says that while the technology is available, adding grid-scale battery storage to the NEM will be highly complex, and just one part of the future grid puzzle.

Mandatory data-retention laws could act as a deterrent for Australia’s efforts to jump on the Internet of Things (IoT) bandwagon, as companies that wish to combine carriage services with data management would then have to shoulder the cost and burden of storing large amounts of data, according to an Australian lawyer.The Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Amendment (Data Retention) Act 2015, passed by the government in March, came into effect last month. It will see customers’ call records, location information, IP addresses, billing information, and other data stored by telcos for two years, accessible without a warrant by law-enforcement agencies.

Telstra is looking to stay ahead of the curve by encouraging technological innovation through collaboration with startups, machine-to-machine (M2M) technology, and the Internet of Things (IoT) — but said that ensuring its network continues to be the best in Australia is still at the core of its business, and the driving force behind being able to deliver these capabilities.

Global tech giant Fujitsu has released an Internet of Things edgeware management platform, iMotion, for Australia and New Zealand.Given the number of internet-connected devices worldwide is forecast to blow out to over 50 billion by 2020, Fujitsu said iMotion is designed as a critical layer for connecting sensors, assets, devices, networks and enterprise systems.The platform turns real-time events and raw data into information to assist in decision making, allowing for a hardware-independent system connecting sensors, readers, devices, networks all integrating data from corporate systems.

Germany, Japan, and the US are regarded as the leaders in grid-level energy storage – due to the combination of government mandates and the need to incorporate large amounts of built and planned solar and wind farms.It is Australia, though, that is widely considered to be the testing ground for storage, both behind the meter and on the network, and the country that will define how storage is more widely implemented. That’s largely due to its huge rates of penetration of rooftop solar, which is driving both challenges and opportunities for grid operators, retailers and consumers alike.